KANSAS CITY, Mo. – UMKC volleyball head coach Christi Posey announced on Tuesday that the 2017 schedule has been finalized and includes 27 regular-season matches. The Roos will host 10 matches at Swinney Recreation Center, as well as the annual Kangaroo Klassic.

“Roo volleyball fans will be excited to see the competitive schedule this season,” shared Posey. “It is a great blend of previous nonconference foes and new opponents in Rutgers, Tulsa, Kansas State, Middle Tennessee and Marshall.”

UMKC will make a quick trip to Lawrence, Kansas, on Aug. 19 for an exhibition contest against the Jayhawks at 1 p.m. CT before opening the 2017 campaign in Clarksville, Tenn., at the Culvers Governors Challenge. The Roos will face Middle Tennessee and host Austin Peay on Aug. 25, before wrapping up the tournament against Marshall on Aug. 26.

UMKC will continue its season at the Cougar Classic in Edwardsville, Ill., where the Roos are set to play Tulsa (Sept. 1), Wright State (Sept. 2) and host SIUE (Sept. 2). Both Tulsa and SIUE finished with a top-100 RPI last season.

The annual Kangaroo Klassic will be held on Sept. 8-9 at Swinney Recreation Center when South Dakota, Rutgers and UNI visit Kansas City for UMKC’s first home games of the season. UNI earned an at-large bid to last year’s NCAA Tournament after finishing with an overall record of 24-10 and 14-4 mark in the Missouri Valley Conference.

The Roos challenging schedule will continue at the Bramlage Coliseum on Sept. 12 when UMKC takes on Kansas State at 6 p.m. CT. The Wildcats were an NCAA Second Round program last season that finished with a top-20 RPI and 21-10 overall record.

UMKC will travel to the CEFCU Invitational in Peoria, Ill., for its final nonconference matches of the season on Sept. 15-16 and play UConn, South Dakota State and tournament host Bradley.

The Roos will begin Western Athletic Conference play at home when they host Grand Canyon (Sept. 21) and CSU Bakersfield (Sept. 23) to start a competitive conference slate.

“As always, the WAC will be tough,” commented Posey. “All teams in our league have worked extremely hard on improving rosters and nonconference scheduling to help keep the WAC competitive.”

UMKC will be tested with a pair of matches at UT Rio Grande Valley (Sept. 28) and New Mexico State (Sept. 30) before returning home for a trio of contests against Chicago State (Oct. 6), Seattle U (Oct. 12) and Utah Valley (Oct. 14) to close out the first half of conference play.

Five of UMKC’s final seven matches will be played on the road, hosting only New Mexico State (Oct. 26) and UT Rio Grande Valley (Oct. 28) for its final home games of the 2017 season. The WAC Championship will take place on Nov. 16-18 in Edinburg, Texas, with the winner receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Championship Tournament.

The 2017 season marks the seventh under the direction of Posey. In her time at the helm, Posey has guided the Roos to a 98-76 mark overall, compiling a winning record in her last five seasons.